Burial vault



R. H. MORRIS BUR'IAL VAULT Jan. 1, 1935.

' 2 Sheets-Sheet 1' Filed April 22, 1953 Jan. 1, 1935. R. H. MORRIS 1,985,903

BURIAL VAULT 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed April 22, 1933 3 20y H Nor/W wa w '5 and: water-proof, whereby a; casket placed there in. will be given'theutmost protection and indefinitely v preserved from destruction by: decaysand Patented Jan. 1, 1935 provementsin burial vaults. p v

'Oneobject ofv the "invention is to provide" an improvediburial vault, which will be both airetight distintegration resulting from: water seepage and earthelementsfll a. I

I wA particular object of the invariants-a provide a vault comprisingxauwaterproofed inner wooden box? or receptacle.for zreceiving the casket ipro-' vided with a metal x'cover or jacket so. secured therearound as to; exclude the entranceof water. and airinto saidbox,xwherebythe latteriis sub-e stantially hermetically sealed; together. with. a concrete envelopecompletely surrounding the-box=v and raccentuatingithe. .hermetic seal, .as well; as

enhancing the water-. proof and air-tight qualities of the vault.

An important object of the invention is to provide a composite vault including a concrete receptacle and a Wooden casket receiving box with a metal liner or covering interposed therebetween, and a complementary lid arranged so that its metal covering may be soldered or welded to the metal lining to complete the seal.

Still another object of the invention is to providea composite vault wherein the metal liner is first sealed and the sealing space is subsequent- 1y filled with concrete'to complete the concrete envelope.

A construction designed to carryout the in-. vention will be hereinafter described, together with. other features of the invention.

The invention will'be more readily understood from a reading of the following specification and by reference to the accompanying drawings in.

which an example of the invention is shown, and wherein:

Figure 1 is an isometrical view, of the box or inner receptacle used in carrying out the invention,

Figure 2 is a similar. view showing the metal covering or sheathingapplied to the" outside of of the cover or cover bent over ready for soldering or welding.

" l mes. (eye-v so asto leave the box and the reinforcing members mounted an exposed I In using the vault, the latter is taken to the 1 grave and embedded in the ground asis shown 1 in Figures 6 and 7. The cover isremoved and Figure 16 is an-enlarged transverse sectional'view of the same aftersoldering, .1"

. i Figurerfl-is' a transverse sectional view of the completevault, 1 "Figure '8. isa transverse sectional viewof' 'a slightly modified form after. the soldering opera tionhas beencompleted; and

,Figure. 9.:isa transverse sectional view of the vault completed.

Inpthe drawingstheznumeral lOIde'signates a.

wooden: box which maybe. of: any suitablecom.

structioh, however, I have found iti'economical to use the wooden box in which the casket is shipped from the factory to the undertaker, but the inveri tion is :not to be limited' to. such. This box is Coated both inside :andvoutside with a suitable.

water-proofing material, such as Y oil, creosote, bi-.

tuminous material; inproper proportion'and mixa ture The box is provided :mitha metal jacket 11 composed of sheets of lead, leadalloy, zinc, copper, galvanized iron, or any other suitable rust-resisting material. The metal sheets are secured to the bottom, end and side walls of the box by means of nails, tacks, or the like, and the joints between the sheets are soldered, welded, or otherwise secured to provide water-tight joints. If desired, a coat of water-proof paint may be applied to this metal jacket;

-Meta1 reinforcing members-12eare secured to cleats 13 mounted on the jacket for reinforcing a concrete covering 14, which extends above the top edge. of the box and forms a trough. Any

suitable reinforcing or tie may be employed. The

vault which is formed has a composite wall com- 'posed of wood, metal and concrete in intimate fastened to the lid in the same manner as the jacket. Brace strips 17 are secured to the underside of the lid to strengthen the same. The lid is provided with reinforcing bars 18 similar to the bars 12 and a slab of concrete 19 is centrally dis- I posed on the metal sheet, as is shown in Figure ,4,

the vault is ready to receive the casket. Nounsightlypile of dirt remains in sight and it is 'me rely necessary to lower the casket onto a pair Y of supporting strips 20 in the bottom of the box infcarrying out the burial. After thecover is a marginal portion of said sheet pedited by laying strips of soldering or welding metal along the edges of the flanges and applying a soldering iron or blow torchthereto.

It will be noted that the cover is of such thickness that the top of the concrete slap 19 will lie in substantially the same horizontal plane as the upper edges of the trough 14. After the flanges 21 complete seal 23, as is shown in Figure '7. "It is obvious that the casket will be completely enveloped by the wood, metal and concrete walls, as.

sealing features are retained. 1111 Figures Sand 9, I have shown a structure in which the flanges 21 are omitted and the edges of the metal jacket 11 and sheet 16 are solderedat 24 and the concrete seal 23 then applied. If itis desired, the wooden lid 15 may have a coating of water-proofed material. It would also be possible to seal the wooden lid onto the wooden box.

This vault has the advantage that it may be previously constructed and placed in the ground prior to the burial ceremony and the usual con-v struction work at the grave'is entirely eliminated.

The soldering and sealing may be done afterthe funeral party has left the grave, or these operations can be quickly carried out immediately after the casket is placed in the vault. The waterproofed box, together with the metal sheath of the concrete envelope assure a water-proof and airtight vault, thus protecting the casket against decay and other destructive forces, as well as making it difficult for unauthorized persons to break into the vault.

'The'description which hasbeen given recites more or less detail of a particular embodiment of the invention, which is set forth as new .and useful, however, I desire it understood that the invention is not limited to such exact details of construction, because it is manifest that changes and have been fastened, concrete is pouredinto the modiflcati ns may be made within the scope of space between the slab and the trough to form a the appended claim, without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

A burial vault. comprising,,an opentopped wooden box and a wooden cover to cooperate therewith, a metal sheath on the outer'wall of the box hermetically sealing the bottom and sides thereof and extending upwardlyabove the sides of the box, a metal sheath hermetically sealing the upper surface of the cover and arranged to meet the edges of the metal sheathing on the box so as to be sealed therewith, a seal for said edges of the sheathing, a layer of concrete secured to and encasing the outside surface of the box and its sheathing and extending above the sides of the box, a layer of concrete secured to the upper surface of the cover but terminating short of the sides and ends of the cover to provide a. channel between the concrete layers of the box and cover for receiving concrete after the edges of the sheathing are sealed, andconcrete in said channel.

' ROY H. MORRIS. 

